Quarantine brought an opportunity: it allowed me to slow down and listen. Which, for someone who loves to be busy, was initially uncomfortable. But once I settled into the discomfort that came with the uncertainty of these times, I decided to go out on a limb and get back to a part of my life I had put on the shelf. I missed being creative, working with my hands and seeing tangible outcomes from simple daily living. And so, I decided to document my journey. A journey that brings me back to vegetable gardens, home cooked meals, slow Saturday morning runs, daily prayer, long lingering dinners with friends, weekend projects, a well-designed home and cozy quiet evenings.
The yearning to get back to this “home-base” emerged within two areas, my home and my body. Where I dwell, where I call home, is made up of both the 4 walls of my living space and the physical space I hold in my body. I will spend a lifetime with my body and more time than any place else in my home. It hit me hard that my home + body, needed to be nourished and tended to with great care.
I’m not the only one who has picked up on this! The worlds of interior design, architecture, science and wellness have also caught on to the importance of creating healthy bodies and homes. There are multibillion dollar industries around wellness-centered interior design, environmental psychology, nutrition and exercise programs!! For good reason too, because where we live actually impacts our health more than anything else. It impacts our mood, social connectedness, choices, habits, etc. In my professional world, which I’ll get to in a second, our living spaces have what we call upstream impacts on health and wellbeing. And while we all have been quarantined in our homes for the last 5 months, I’m sure you too have noticed, and felt, the impact your home, food choices and movement opportunities (or lack thereof) have on your wellbeing (I know I have).
Before we get much further, I’ll briefly introduce myself since this is my first post on my new blog. Hi, I’m Nicole. My background is in public health and wellness and you can read more about my story here if you are curious. Professionally, I’ve spent my whole career in the health and wellness industry. I was the Chief Wellness Officer for UW-Madison prior to moving down the Mississippi where my husband and I currently live in NOLA for his medical residency. I’m now consulting for organizations, helping them create wellness focused strategies that support employee engagement through policy, system and environmental change. Upon our move down here, I was yearning for a creative outlet to bring my industry knowledge and passions to a practical everyday life level. So I landed here, and so did you. I’m glad you’re here, friend.
I hope this can be a continued conversation together where I’m able to share simple, practical and sustainable practices to design a well home and a well body. My hope is that we can be on this journey together.